I Will Be There For You
by Pastor Calvin
Summary: Jack finds an unconsious girl in the forest in the forest one rainy night. He trys to nourish this girl back to health, but What will happen when the girls cousin trys to kill them? *FINISHED!!!!!*
1. A Rainy Night Run In

Chapter 01  
  
"Karen! Get me another beer, an' put it on my account!" barked Mr. Miller. This would be his fifth mug of beer. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was obviously drunk.  
  
"Your account is already over the limit," Karen objected. She knew she had better be extremely cautious in what she said to this man, or else this one could turn very ugly.  
  
"You blooming dare defy me?! Git me that beer blooming now or I'll have you blooming sleep with the chickens tonight!"  
  
Karen Turned from Mr. Miller and rolled her eyes in exasperation. He knew as well as she did that they didn't have any chickens. He hated chickens. He was very obviously drunk. "Yes father," Karen mumbled as she reluctantly walked over to the bar counter, and began to prepare a drink.  
  
"Your father doesn't have enough left on the account to buy another drink. Karen, what are you doing?" Duke asked. Karen and Duke had been good friends for as long as she could remember, and seeing as she loved to come here, he hired her as a bar tender.  
  
"I'm taking it out of my pay check," Karen replied. "If I don't do it, he'll come after me, or worse."  
  
"Karen," Duke groaned. "When are you going to learn? It doesn't matter at this point anymore whether or not you get him a drink. He's just going to get drunker and drunker, and if you stick around, chances are that something, or someone is going to set him off, and he will still come after you." As much as Karen hated to admit it, he was right. Just last month a scenario similar to this one had occurred, and like Duke said, something set the man off.  
  
"Well then, what do you recommend that I do?" she inquired.  
  
"Take the rest of the night off. Go home or something."  
  
"But-" Karen began.  
  
"No buts," Duke cut in. "as of right now I'm relieving you of duty."  
  
Karen let out a long sigh. "All right." Karen put on her white Jacket and swiped a Pepsi from the fridge. "See you tomorrow," Karen called as she walked out the swinging door.  
  
"Hey!" yelled Mr. Miller as he stumbled up from his chair. "Karen! What about my beer!?" he yelled as he stumbled out the door after her.  
  
Duke shook his head and groaned. "Oh dear, maybe I should have let her buy that beer."  
  
Karen ran down the dark streets of the village as fast as her slender legs would carry her, which surprisingly enough, just wasn't quite fast enough. She knew the only place she could possibly lose her father was in the forest. The trees offered obstacles that the husky man couldn't navigate through easily due to the amount of fat that he had on him. If she could just make it to the forest. Karen glanced behind her, and the sight was enough to make anyone want to vomit. Great gobs of fat jiggling every which way as her father ran. She vowed not to look back again. She was absolutely positive that her tendons would tear, or that her heart would detonate within her chest. However, none of the following came to pass. At last, she reached the creek. All that was left was to leap over it and she would be in the trees. Unfortunately, before she could attempt this, she was caught by her father's huge hand.  
  
"How dare you! How dare you! You blooming prostitute. You have brought shame on out family! Why I ought to rip out your beating heart," yelled the big man.  
  
"What are you talking about?!" Karen yelled as she struggled futilely to free herself from her fathers grasp.  
  
"Don't play stupid with me. You know exactly what I'm talking about."  
  
Then it dawned on Karen why he thought she was a prostitute. He was watching Jerry Springer this morning, and it had to do with young, teenage prostitution. In his drunken state, he thought that she was the prostitute. He father began to beat on her. The last thing she remembered was her father's fist coming towards her face. She toppled off the shore and fell into the creek.  
  
The creek itself was shallow, but the sides were steep, and went up about a meter. When wet, they were slippery, and nearly impossible to get out of on your own.  
  
Karen's father marched home, grumbling to himself. It began to pour. Karen was drenched, and there was nothing she could do about it.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Karen's head hurt like, possibly the next closest thing to hell, or so she thought. She was running a blazing fever. It was still raining, and she was felt as if she were colder than ice. She tried to get up, but slipped, and in the process, sprained her ankle. "Arrrgh!" she yelled. "Could things possibly get any worse?" she wondered aloud. "Help!" she cried as she nursed her ankle. "Somebody please, help me, anybody." her voice trailed off. "Anybody." she whispered. Karen tried to get out of the creek but in the process, she slipped down the side of the bank, and hurt her ankle even worse. "HELP!" she screamed, although she was sure nobody had heard her. "God, please, help."  
  
"Hello!?" came a reply. Jack couldn't get any sleep that night, so he felt like taking a walk, in the rain, to the forest. He figured that perhaps, if he indeed heard the plea for help like he thought he heard, then perhaps God had caused him to not be able to sleep so that he could possibly help whoever was here, or something.  
  
"Over Here!" Karen screamed. Her heart raced. Someone had actually heard her plea for help. Jack ran over to the creek. "I can't get out."  
  
Jack leaned over the edge and gave Karen his hand. "Grab my hand." She grasped it and he slowly pulled her out. The two remained seated on the ground for a moment, as Jack caught his breathe. "My name's Jack, what's yours?"  
  
It was a moment before Karen responded. Oh wow! She thought to herself. Time seemed to slow down, and for the first time she believed in love at first sight, but why hadn't she ever seen him before? Who would just show up on this pathetic excuse for an island for no apparent reason. "Karen." She replied. She felt dizzy, and she couldn't hide it either.  
  
"Are you okay?" Jack asked. Karen could hear some worry in his voice.  
  
"Sure," she replied. "I'm fine." She and Jack stood up, but Karen nearly fell, fortunately for her, Jack caught her.  
  
"Careful. Are you sure you're okay?"  
  
"I'm fine," Karen insisted. There was a note of agitation in her voice, and Jack's instincts told him that he had better back off, but he ignored them. He put Karen's arm over his shoulder so that he could help support her. Karen didn't fight it. As much as she hated it, and wanted to fight it, she knew she needed his help.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Karen groaned as she woke up. She was feeling much better. "Where am I?" she wondered to herself. She looked around. The room was rather small. It was a squarish room. It had a hardwood floor, and wooden walls. In the centre of the room was a small table and a couple of chairs around it. In the far corner of the room was a television set, a wood burning stove, and an inflatable couch. On the floor lay a sleeping boy. She stopped to think for a few minutes. Then she remembered what happened last night, and suddenly everything made sense. That boy was Jack, the man who had more or less saved her life. The sun's rays began to peek through the window. On the table was a steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup, and a note beside it. The note read: "Dear Karen, The soup is for you, if it's cold, just warm it up in the microwave in the kitchen. Jack." She smiled to herself. Jack must have been up all night trying to take care of her. She sat down and began to eat. It was delicious.  
  
Jack stirred from his sleep, and saw Karen eating. He smiled to himself. Looks like I've made myself a new friend, he thought to himself. "Good morning," he greeted. Karen jumped in surprise, spilling a little bit of the broth in her lap.  
  
"Aaah! You startled me." She said. She returned to eating her soup, and began to literally inhale it. "This is good soup."  
  
"Thank you. It's my mother's recipe," Jack replied. "There was a moment of silence. She was, beautiful. No, the word beautiful didn't do her justice. The epitome perfection. Now that better described her. Karen finished her soup. "I suppose we had better get you home. Where do you live anyway?" Jack asked.  
  
"The vineyard," Karen replied.  
  
"And where's that?" Jack asked.  
  
"Um, a few miles from the forest's entrance."  
  
Jack went over to the window and stared at the thermometer. Minus Seven. That's awfully cold, Jack thought. It was only the month of August after all. There was a thin layer of frost on the grass. Jack grimaced as he thought about his tomatoes. Well, they were probably already ruined, so he tried not to worry. Karen got up and wandered over to the fireplace where her coat was hanging to dry. Jack looked at it, then back at the thermometer. "Is that jacket going to be warm enough?"  
  
"Why? How cold is it outside?"  
  
"Minus 7 degrees," Jack replied.  
  
"Is that Celsius, or Fahrenheit? 'Cause Fahrenheit doesn't make an ounce of sense to me."  
  
"It's Celsius," Jack answered.  
  
Karen thought about it for a moment. Her jacket was rather thin. It was more or less a spring jacket. "No, I don't think it will be."  
  
Jack opened his closet and dug out a thick, blue winter coat. "Here." He handed it to her.  
  
Karen smiled. "Thank you."  
  
Jack returned the smile. "No problem."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jack sucked the cold air in through his nostrils. It made him feel so alive. It gave him ideas of new things to do around the farm, or, at least it felt like it. He couldn't quite grasp what these ideas were. Oh well. The warm sun felt good against their backs. The air was full of activity. The robins were singing, and sparrows were flitting every which way.  
  
The two walked up Karen's driveway. In the windows of Karen's house, Jack saw Mrs. Miller, Karen's mother. Mrs. Miller was a lady in about her mid forties. Her hair was curly and grey. She was tall, and rather slender. She looked extremely worried. Mrs. Millers face lit up when she saw Jack and Karen walking towards the house. Within about two point five seconds she was out the door and running towards Karen.  
  
"Karen!" she shouted, tears pouring from her eyes.  
  
"Mom!" Karen ran towards her mother. Karen ran into her mothers arms and they hugged.  
  
"Oh Karen. My baby. Where have you been?"  
  
"I was at Jack's house," she replied.  
  
"Jack, who's he?"  
  
"Mom, I'd like you to meet my new friend, Jack. Jack, this is my mother."  
  
Jack extended his hand to Mrs. Miller. "Pleased to meet you."  
  
"Why didn't you let me know you weren't coming home last night?" Mrs. Miller asked.  
  
"Perhaps," began Karen, "we should go inside, because it's a long story."  
  
Mrs. Miller brought them inside. "Would you care for some tea Jack," she asked, trying to make him feel comfortable.  
  
"Only if it's not too much trouble," he answered.  
  
"No, no not at all. Is Earl Grey all right?"  
  
"Yes, that will be fine." Jack and Karen sat down in opposite chairs. Mrs. Miller returned from the kitchen a moment later with three cups of tea. "Thank you," Jack said as Mrs. Miller distributed the tea. Jack took a sip, and then set it down. It was just the way he liked it, not too strong.  
  
"So Karen, what exactly happened?" Mrs. Miller asked.  
  
Karen explained everything, from how her father had beaten her up, to when Jack had gotten her out of the creek, and treated her fever. Her mother tried her best not to bawl, but near the end, she couldn't help herself. Karen got out of her chair, and sat down beside her. Then she put an arm around her crying mother.  
  
Jack felt really uncomfortable, or out of place in this instance, with Karen's mother crying and all. He took another sip at his hot tea. Karen's mother turned to Jack a few minutes later when she had finally calmed down.  
  
"Jack, I would like to thank you for all you have done for my daughter. It really means a lot to me. You are welcome to come here and see her at any time." She smiled warmly at him.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Miller. Well, I suppose I had better get going. I must get home and tend to the chores." Just as Jack got up to leave, Karen's mother halted him.  
  
"Wait. Wouldn't you care to stay for lunch? After all you've done, it's the least I can do." Mrs. Miller asked hopefully.  
  
"No thank you," Jack replied as he put his cap on. Whenever he did this, there was a tuft of his brown hair sticking out the back, and it looked rather comical, so Karen thought. "The animals back home haven't had a bite to eat all morning, so I don't think it would be fair to keep them waiting much longer. Perhaps some other time." Jack smiled at her.  
  
Mrs. Miller sighed. "Yes, well, perhaps. We'll see you later then."  
  
Jack waved as he walked out the door. Inside of him, he felt a warm glow. He could over hear mother and daughter laughing quietly together about something or another, which he figured was good. He knew life around the farm just may get a whole lot better now that he had a friend. 


	2. The Dance

Chapter 02  
  
Jack had made up his mind to come and see Karen today, no matter how nervous he felt. He had got up about an hour earlier than usual so that he could get the animals fed, and bring his tomatoes in. They still needed to ripen a bit, but he couldn't leave them out any longer, considering the frost they had yesterday. Jack walked briskly towards Karen's house.  
  
Jack swung the old knocker that was on the wooden door. It was stiff, and creaked loudly. The door was opened by a young man, about Jack's age. The man wore a purple bandanna, and he looked as if he hadn't shaved in about a week. "Hello," said Jack. "Is Karen home?"  
  
"Oh Yes. Everyone wants to see Karen. Always Karen. Karen's so special, let's all go see Karen..," the man rambled on. Jack could tell he obviously didn't like Karen.  
  
"My I see her?" asked Jack.  
  
"Huh, oh yeah, what ever. Her room's upstairs," grumbled the man.  
  
"My name's Jack," he said as he stuck out his hand.  
  
The man looked at him inquisitively for a moment. He ignored Jack's outstretched hand. He could tell that not shaking his hand made Jack feel uncomfortable. He smiled wryly at that as he walked right past him to the kitchen. Jack was still puzzling over the man's behaviour when he heard a familiar voice call his name.  
  
"Jack!" cried Karen, as she ran down the stairs towards him. "What are you doing here?" She smiled warmly at him, and almost instantly, he ceased to be nervous.  
  
"I was just going to stop by and see how you were doing," Jack said as he smiled back.  
  
"Oh, I'm doing much better. I was just going to head out to town. Care to join me?"  
  
"Sure!" Jack exclaimed. "I'd love to. What are you going to be doing there?"  
  
"Basically just shopping around, blowing time," Karen replied.  
  
"Sound's like fun."  
  
"Bye Mom!" Karen called over her shoulder as she slid her boots on. "I'll see you whenever I get back!"  
  
"Don't be gone too long!" Mrs. Miller called from the kitchen.  
  
"Don't worry!" Karen Shouted back just before she slammed the door shut.  
  
"Who was that guy who wore the purple bandanna?" Jack inquired.  
  
"He's Kai, my cousin. Why? Was he harassing you or something?" Jack could sense that Karen seemed slightly worried for a moment.  
  
"No, Not really," Jack replied. "He doesn't really seem to like you too much."  
  
"He doesn't like anybody in my family. He only stays here because we're the only people on this island who are willing to provide work for him."  
  
"Why's that?"  
  
"He's gotten into trouble in the past, mainly petty theft. The only reason we let him work for us is that he's my cousin, and we're desperate for workers."  
  
Jack left it at that. He didn't really like the idea of being really nosey.  
  
After a moment of silence, Karen spoke. "So, where are you from?"  
  
"Huh?" Jack asked. Karen's question interrupted his thoughts.  
  
"Where are you from?" she asked.  
  
"Oh! Um, I'm from the mainland. I lived in a small house in the outskirts of Edmonton."  
  
Karen nodded her head. "Cool. So you're the guy who took over that old farm, eh?"  
  
"Yeah. It's a wreck, the yard I mean. I've only started on the field. It has to be cleared for spring." Jack thought back to his grandfathers last words. He pushed the thoughts out of his head. Jack decided to change the subject so he wouldn't start crying. "What kinds of facilities are there in town?"  
  
"Not too many. Let's see, we've got a bar, a bakery, a tool shop, a general store, a library, a church, a medicine shop, and flower shop. I work at the bar, and some of the people that come there, I tell you. Some of those people are real nut-cases."  
  
"So I've heard," Jack said as they walked into the town. "This place isn't as small as you've been making it out to be." Jack's attention was caught by a sign. It said 'There will be a dance held in the town square tonight.' Jack smiled to himself, and looked over to Karen. His smile grew even bigger. "Karen, would you be interested in going to that dance tomorrow?"  
  
"Dance." she thought for a moment. Karen smiled right back. "Oh, that dance. Why not?"  
  
"Really? I mean if it's going too fast for you or-"  
  
Karen cut him off, and put her finger to his lip to hush him. "You silly boy, I said yes, okay?" Jack nodded. Karen smiled warmly, such a warm smile that Jacks heart could've melted, or something like that. "Good. Now, shall we do some shopping?" * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The last stop they had made was the Bakery. Karen began to scrounge around in her purse for some money to buy lunch, but then Jack put a firm hand on her wrist. "Hey, I'll pay for this one." Karen had been giving her purse a serious workout. Everything that she had purchased, she had paid for. When ever Jack had offered to pay for something, she didn't let him. Perhaps he just wasn't being aggressive enough, or something. Jack stepped up to the counter.  
  
Karen stopped digging in her purse. She didn't object at all, one reason being, she didn't have enough to buy lunch. He is so thoughtful. Karen thought to herself. She couldn't stop thinking about how nice the boy was. She knew that she was in love, and there was absolutely nothing that she could do about it. She was still lost in her thoughts when someone tapped her on her shoulder. "Ah!" she screeched in surprise. She spun around to face Jack. "Oh, it's you."  
  
"Are you ready to go?" Jack asked.  
  
"Go? We haven't eaten yet."  
  
Jack smiled at her. "I thought we could eat in the town square, get away from the people."  
  
Karen nodded in agreement.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Jack dug the food out of the brown paper bag. There was a couple of hamburgers, and a couple bags of fries, and two cans of sprite. Not what a nutrition obsessed person would call a balanced breakfast.  
  
"I suppose we should pray," said Jack.  
  
"Huh, what for?" Karen asked with a confused look on our face.  
  
"Well, where I come from, we always thank God for our food," replied Jack. They bowed their heads. "God, I would just like to thank you for this meal we are about to share, and I pray that you will bless it to our body's. In Jesus name we pray, amen."  
  
"A-men. Lets eat," said Karen.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
It was beginning to grow dark out. Jack shivered in the cold as he walked towards Karen's front door. He had promised to pick her up for the dance. He knocked on the door. It was opened shortly later by Mrs. Miller.  
  
"Hello Jack. Come on in. I'll go get Karen," she said as she hurried up stairs to Karen's room.  
  
Jack looked around the living room. It's was a whole lot better than his living room. He left it at that, because he didn't want to start griping to himself on how pathetic his living room was. Moments later, Karen came down the stairs towards him.  
  
"Hi Jack. I'll just grab my coat and I'll be right with you," she said as she dashed to the coat closet.  
  
Jack looked at Karen for a moment. She was wearing a nice, sparkly purple skirt and top, also, she had her hair done up in a bun. Jack on the other hand had just changed into clean clothes, and combed his hair, but he never really was the type to dress up fancy unless it was absolutely necessary. "You look great," Jack commented as Karen returned to the living room with her coat on.  
  
Karen grinned broadly. "Thanks."  
  
"Well, shall we go?" Jack asked.  
  
"Yes, we shall," Karen giggled. "Bye Mom. See you around midnight."  
  
"Okay dear. Behave yourself," Mrs. Miller called back from the kitchen.  
  
"Don't worry," Karen replied as she closed the front door to the house.  
  
Jack and Karen began their little trek to town down the dirt road. As the house grew further and further away, Karen slowly grasped Jack's hand with her own.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The town square was full of people, although Jack couldn't quite say it was crowded. At the front of the town square, there were large speakers, and a bunch of sound equipment, as well as lighting stuff. The town square had been designed to be able to be closed up to the weather. There were posts for tarp to be fastened as walls and roof. Today, that was how it was being used. Also, scattered around the edges of the town square were electric heaters.  
  
The mayor stepped up to a microphone to make an announcement before the dance started. "Ahem. Lady's 'SQUELCH' and gentle- 'SQUELCH', oh my, lets try again. Lady's and Gentlemen. Welcome to the seventh annual town dance. This year, Harris and Maria have volunteered to be our DJ's. Harris will be using some new CD's this year, so hold on to your pant's. So, I'll turn the stage to Harris and Maria." The mayor then entered the crowd. Music began to play. It was obviously a new enough CD that Jack wasn't able to recognize the song being played, or something, but it was a slower piece of music, and that may have been why Jack didn't recognize it. He never really listened to much of that sort of stuff. Jack was tapped on the shoulder. He spun around to face Karen.  
  
"Would you care to have this dance?" Karen giggled, and blushed slightly.  
  
Jack smiled back at her. "I'd love to." Jack and Karen danced. While they danced, Jack never took his eyes off of Karen's. If he were to die right now, he would die a happy man. This was nearly perfect. When he lived back in the city, life seemed way too repetitive. Every day, the same basic thing. Now that he's lived on this island, life has had more variety, way more fun than life in the city. Several songs came and went. Finally, the music began to liven up, so much so that they couldn't slow dance anymore. "Would you care for a drink?" Jack asked.  
  
Karen looked up from the bench she was sitting at. "Sure." She grinned at Jack.  
  
Jack walked over the refreshments stand, and began to pour Karen a small cup of pop. In this particular refreshments stand, there was both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Karen had told him that they use the wine that they make on her vineyard at these sort of events. Jack was knocked aside by a fat man. "Hey! Watch it."  
  
The man glared at Jack. "Git out of my way, cause if you don't, you won't live to hear the echo. Now scram," the man bellowed before he began guzzling the wine. Jack looked up a the man. "That guys huge" Jack thought out loud. The big man that Jack was referring to turned around.  
  
"What did you call me?" he asked.  
  
"Er. The mayors nose, it's huge," Jack said, wondering if he could really bear face his way out of this one.  
  
The fat man was actually convinced that Jack was actually talking about the mayor in the first place. He began chuckling loudly. "We might make a man out of you yet." With that the man continued to guzzle the wine.  
  
Jack retreated to Karen with the half empty cup of pop. Karen had overheard the commotion by the concession stand, and she was feeling uneasy. "Here you go," Jack said as he handed the cup to Karen.  
  
"Thanks. Maybe we should go home," Karen said.  
  
"Why?" Jack asked. "It's only ten O'clock.  
  
"I heard what was going on over there. The that got mad at you over there was my dad. And, in about an hour, he's going to be extremely drunk, and very dangerous."  
  
"I catch your drift. Let's go then," Jack replied.  
  
Karen grabbed her purse, then both she and Jack got up to leave. Then they heard a voice, Kai's voice. "Hey. where you goin?" he asked as he grabbed Karen's arm. His speech was slurred, and his breath rank of booze. He was drunk, very drunk.  
  
"Not with you," Karen replied angrily.  
  
"Just one dance? You know you want to." Kai began, pulling more aggressively on Karen. Jack looked into Karen's face. He could see a tinge of fear.  
  
"Kai, take a hint, I said no, so screw off," she said as she jerked away from him. "Come on Jack, lets go." Jack grasped Karen's hand as they walked away. He last thing they heard Kai shouting was something about a time in seventy two. Neither of them spoke until they reached the edge of town.  
  
"What was that all about?" Jack asked in.  
  
"You mean with Kai? Oh, nothing, he's just drunk," replied Karen.  
  
"Looks like he gets pretty aggressive."  
  
"Oh Yeah, you don't know the half of it. He's given me quite a few scars, let me tell you," replied Karen. "Some of them have been pretty serious. You know, sometimes I wish alcohol never was invented?"  
  
Jack nodded. "I know how you feel." He thought back to the beginnings of his own childhood, how his father used to get drunk before he became a Christian. Once that had occurred, his father felt like he had more reason to quit drinking.  
  
They continued their brisk walk up the cold path to Karen's house. When they were about 50 or so meters from the house, Karen stopped. "Thanks for taking me to the dance tonight Jack," Karen said. She gave him a big hug. Jack then caught on to what she was doing, he returned the hug. "Good night Jack." Karen let go after a moment and walked to her house.  
  
Jack sighed. This had indeed been a near perfect night. 


	3. Murder I Wrote

Chapter 03  
  
"By mum, I'm heading over to Jacks." Said Karen.  
  
"OK, behave."  
  
"I will."  
  
"Mrs. Miller?" said Kai.  
  
"Hello Kai," said Karen's mom. "You sound upset, is there anything the matter?"  
  
"Actually," began Kai, "there is. I need to be paid today."  
  
Mrs. Miller sighed. (Mrs. Miller is Karen's mother in case you haven't caught on yet.) "I'm sorry Kai, but we just don't have the money."  
  
Kai exploded at her. "That's what you've been telling me for the past 3 months!"  
  
"Look, I'm sorry, but the vineyard hasn't been making enough money to pay you. I promise. I'll make it up to you, somehow."  
  
Kai let out a deep sigh as he casually picked a large knife up off the counter. "All right, I understand." Quick as lightning he hurled the knife at Mrs. Miller. It penetrated her heart. She let out a shrill scream as she died. Kai ran out the back door and started working in the vineyard as if nothing happened.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Thanks for dinner Jack." Karen smiled.  
  
"Well thank you for bringing the very berry pie." Jack replied.  
  
"I had probably better get home and help mom in the kitchen with supper."  
  
"OK, see you later." It was about two pm when Karen got home.  
  
"Mom, I'm home," she called as she walked into the kitchen. She saw her mother lying on the floor, a knife in her chest. Horrified, Karen screamed a blood curdling scream as she shot out of the front door. Kai came running to Karen.  
  
"Karen!" she didn't stop running. Kai had to run up behind her and catch her. She shook convulsively, her eyes wide with horror. "What's wrong?" Karen wouldn't speak. She just shook her self free of Kai's grip, and kept right on running.  
  
Karen ran like she had never run before. She didn't stop. Kai was trailing behind her. "Karen, slow down!" he called, but Karen refused. She wouldn't stop until she got to Jacks. That was where she knew she would be safe. "Jack!" Karen screamed as she ran towards him. He stood up from peeling potatoes. She ran into his arms, tears pouring down her face. She sobbed uncontrollably.  
  
"Karen, what happened?" asked Jack.  
  
"My, mu. ., mu.., muther... w-was. k, killed!" she managed to choke out."  
  
Jack brought her inside just as Kai showed up.  
  
Kai knocked wildly on Jack's door.  
  
"What?!" snapped Jack as he opened the door.  
  
Kai ignored Jack and barged in towards Karen. "Karen what happened? Why did you run away?" Karen didn't answer.  
  
"What the devil are you doing in my house?" Jack demanded.  
  
"I heard Karen scream, and run out of the house, she looked like she had seen a ghost." Replied Kai.  
  
"Someone killed my mother," Karen said as she began to calm down.  
  
"When?" Kai asked.  
  
"I don't know. She was lying on the kitchen floor when I found her." Karen began sobbing again. Jack sat down and put his arm around her.  
  
"I think I might know who. As I was heading back out, I overheard your mother talking to your father about the quantity of the wine he was drinking. By the time I was out in the field, I heard your mom screaming. Then your father went to the wine cellar to drink." lied Kai.  
  
"Why didn't you go to investigate the scream?" asked Jack.  
  
"Well I didn't think much of it at the time. I just figured that he had slapped her really hard or something."  
  
Jack shook his head. "Well, Karen, if you would like, I could have you stay here until this clears up." Then he looked to Kai. "You've got someplace else to stay?"  
  
"Yeah, I live in a small hut up in the mountains." He replied.  
  
Jack was relieved that Kai wouldn't need to stay with him. Something about Kai made him uneasy, but Jack just couldn't place it. "Well, Kai, I'll be seeing you later."  
  
"Goodbye." Said Kai as he left.  
  
"Do you believe him?" asked Jack.  
  
"Why did dad kill her? How could he? We have to warn the townspeople."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"So you see," said Karen, "we have to put my father behind bars, for everyone's sake."  
  
"Well, I suppose I could alert the citizens of what has occurred today, but without solid proof, I can't be of much more help."  
  
"Thank you mayor. It's getting dark Karen, let's go." Said Jack.  
  
"Well, he wasn't much help." Grumbled Karen.  
  
"Hey, what's going on over there." Asked Jack.  
  
"Lets go find out." As they got closer, they could see people with pitchforks, clubs, torches, you name it. In the middle of it was Kai. He was standing on a soapbox.  
  
"Are we going to tolerate it?" hollered Kai.  
  
"No!" the people responded.  
  
"What's going on?" Karen asked her friend Ann.  
  
"Kai told us all about your mother, and how your father killed her. So they all decided to drag him out to the beach, and drown him!" replied Ann.  
  
"What?! They can't do that!" cried Karen. "Jack, we've got to stop them!" 


	4. The Mob

Chapter 04  
  
Jack squeezed his way through the crowd. "Kai! What do you think you're doing?!" Kai didn't answer. He just kept shouting. He leapt towards Kai, knocking him off the soapbox, and pinning him to the ground. The crowd went silent. "I said what the f*** do you think your doing!?" roared Jack.  
  
"I'm letting justice prevail!" Kai snorted back.  
  
"Yeah, well have you ever heard of innocent until proven guilty?" inquired Jack.  
  
"Go, to, hell!" replied Kai, then he thrust himself up out from under Jack, and just as he was landing, spun around, kicked Jack, knocking him into the dirt.  
  
"Come on," Kai shouted to the mob, "let's go and let justice be served." The crowd began to shout again and marched off towards the Vineyard.  
  
Karen ran to Jack. "Jack! Are you all right?"  
  
"I think so," He replied as hauled himself to his feet. "We've got to warn your father."  
  
"We'll never make it in time!" exclaimed Karen.  
  
"Well, then, I've got another idea. Follow me!"  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Why are we going to the forest?"  
  
"The fisherman lives in the forest. I need his fishing nets."  
  
"What ever for?" asked Karen as Jack got off his horse.  
  
"There's not enough time to explain," said Jack as he snatched the large nets from the fisher mans tent. "I'm going to have to drop you off near town. Try to find help!"  
  
"Who should I get?"  
  
"I don't know." They came to a stop. "You'll think of something. I'll be at the beach."  
  
Jack sat on the edge of the Green ranch that over saw the beach. He could here voices coming.  
  
"Throw him in the water!" Kai shouted. "Let's drown 'im.  
  
"A little further." Jack thought to himself. "IEEEEE!" Jack cried as he hurled the newly weighted net over the mob. Jack slid down the steep slope, and Jack pointed a pistol at them. "Kai!" Jack yelled.  
  
"Why hello Jack buddy old pal." Kai responded.  
  
"Drop the sarcasm. It's all over for you. We know you killed Karen's mother." Jack said. He was trying hard to keep control of his breathing.  
  
"Jack, you know I would never do anything of the sort. You all know Mr. Miller here did it right. It doesn't matter what you say Jack, I saw Mr. Miller do it."  
  
Jack smiled, and this worried Kai. "You just proved yourself guilty."  
  
"Wha- what do you mean?" Kai was sounding worried.  
  
"You know, when you told me what you remembered, you said you only heard Mrs. Miller scream, while you were out working on in the vineyard," said Jack.  
  
"So, What's it to you?"  
  
"Here you said that you saw him do it."  
  
Kai was red in the face. He knew he had been outsmarted. He smiled. "How very observant of you Jack. OK, I'll confess, I killed Mrs. Miller, and know what else? There's nothing you can do about it!" cried the mad Kai as he drew a revolver out of his pocket. The mob screamed and they all dropped to the ground. Kai put the gun to his head and was about to pull the trigger. Suddenly he stopped as he felt a sharp pain in his back. He reached around and pulled out a dart. He looked behind him to see Karen, holding a tranquilizer gun. That was the last thing he remembered before he passed out.  
  
"Karen!" Jack cried in relief as he dropped his empty gun in the sand. 


	5. Fire

Chapter 05  
  
Kai struggled as the mainland authorities hauled him into the helicopter.  
  
"Goodbye Karen." Mr. Miller said as he hugged his daughter.  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to stay?" Karen asked.  
  
"I'm sure. I love you Karen." He smiled as a tear rolled down his cheek. Mr. Miller climbed into the helicopter and flew away.  
  
"Well, do you plan on staying at your house? 'Cause I think it would be kind of freaky, since your mom died there and all. If you like you could stay with me," offered Jack.  
  
"No, thank you. I'll be fine."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
That night, Karen cried herself to sleep, in her mother's favourite rocker, thinking about how Kai killed her. She woke up, at about quarter to twelve, to a searing heat. She was almost instantly alert. The house was on fire. She cursed at herself for leaving the fire unattended. She tried to get out the front door. The doorknob was seized. She began kicking the door, until it tore free of the screws that anchored it to the house. She ran as fast as she could to Jack's house. "Jack!" she yelled as she burst into his house. "Jack! Wake up!"  
  
"Good morning sunshine." Jack murmured as he slowly began to sit up.  
  
"Jack! My house is on fire!"  
  
"What!" Jack was now fully awake. "Come with me!" he cried as he ran outside in his boxers. They jumped onto his horse, and galloped to town to get help.  
  
"Wake up! Karen's house is on fire!" Jack hollered as he pounded on the doors of the citizens. A short while later, Jack had the volunteer fire department assembled.  
  
They fought the fire valiantly. They threw dirt at the house, and what water they could get hold of. But their limited, age old technology was no match for the fire. A wind began to pick up, spreading the fire to the vines.  
  
"Please God!" Jack played as he shovelled dirt. "Please send us rain!"  
  
Shortly before 5 am a downpour began. At about 7, the fire was out. All that was left of Karen's house, however, was a pile of ash.  
  
Karen ran to her wine cellar, which was a good distance from the house, and came back with an armful of wine bottles. She thanked each of the men as she handed them out. When she came to Jack, he put his arm around her.  
  
"Let's go home," he said.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Good afternoon Jack." Karen smiled at him.  
  
"Good morning."  
  
"I made you breakfast. Oatmeal and toast." The toast was slightly burnt, and the oatmeal was slightly runny, but other than that, it tasted pretty good.  
  
"This is good."  
  
"Thanks," replied Karen. "Thank you for your help Jack."  
  
"No problem. How did the fire start?"  
  
"I just fell asleep and wasn't paying enough attention to the fireplace."  
  
It was then Karen noticed Jack looked a little shaky. "Jack, are you alright?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine."  
  
"Well, you don't look so good."  
  
"Yeah, I suppose your right, I could use a little fresh air. Lets go to the forest."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Jack, what's on your mind?" Karen asked. "Are you sick?" she sounded worried.  
  
"No." He smiled. "Karen, from when we first met, you have touched my life in a remarkable way. As I've gotten to know you, quite frankly, I've." he choked on the words, "fallen in love with you." He took a deep breath, then knelt down, and held out a small box. "Will, will you marry me?"  
  
She took the box, and inside of it was a diamond Jack had dug up from the mine himself. "Jack I." her eyes began to get blurry. "Yes! Jack Oh Yes!"  
  
"Really!?"  
  
"Yes!" they both pranced around the forest, giddy with excitement.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Karen! You're so lucky!" Ann said. They and about two or three other girls were measuring and fitting the pieces of her wedding dress together.  
  
"The little speech he made, it was so, so, so." Karen sighed.  
  
"Heart warming?" offered Maria.  
  
"Not the best word to describe it, but it'll do."  
  
"Who's going to be your maid of honour?" Ann asked.  
  
"Maid of honour?" Karen asked.  
  
"Sure, you know. Usually they are the person who introduced you to the groom, or something like that," replied Maria.  
  
"I haven't thought that far yet. Give me time."  
  
"Hey, does anyone here ever wonder why they call the boy, 'the groom'?" asked Ann. They giggled.  
  
"Maybe, it has something to do with monkeys," offered Maria.  
  
"Naah!" Ann and Karen said together.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Jack!" cried Harris.  
  
"Harris. How's it going?"  
  
"Good. I heard you and Karen are getting married."  
  
"Yeah. It's kinda scary actually," said Jack.  
  
"I'd believe that. Well, if you'd like, we could swing by the bar and celebrate."  
  
"Naw, I had better not. Thanks anyway."  
  
"Well, see you later." And with that, Harris walked off.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The sun had set, and on the beach, Kai washed ashore. "I'm exhausted." He thought to himself. "But I escaped." He remembered how he had managed to jump out of the helicopter, and into the sea. "Jack! Karen! I'm going to make you pay!" and before he could think another thought, he was asleep. 


	6. The Wedding, or is it?

Chapter 06  
  
Karen seemed to smile radiantly as she slowly walked down the church isle towards Jack. If only her father had been here, that would make things perfect, well almost. She thought of her mother, but shoved those thought out of her mind. Now was not the time to dwell on them. After all, things weren't all bad. Ann's father was willing to escort her to the front of the church.  
  
Karen looked at Jack. He was dressed up in his tuxedo, and for the first one of the first times, she noted, he was not wearing his blue baseball cap. His brown hair was combed back, and his face was washed. She took a deep breath as she stepped up onto the platform next to Jack. The pastor stood up from the front pew and walked towards them.  
  
"I would like to thank you all for coming out today, to witness this union." the pastor droned. Karen hardly heard what the pastor was saying. Here eyes were fixed on Jacks. The wedding seemed so perfect.  
  
"Karen, do you take Jack here, to be your lawfully wedded husband. For richer and for poorer. In sickness and in health, until death do you part?"  
  
Karen took a moment to answer. "I do."  
  
"Jack, do you take Karen to be your lawfully wedded wife, For richer and for poorer. In sickness and in health, until death do you part?"  
  
"I do," Jack replied.  
  
"Then with the power entrusted in me by the Lord God, I pronounce you, husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."  
  
Karen and Jack kissed a passionate kiss, her soft lips against his. Time and space seemed to dissolve around them. Just as Jack was absolutely certain this moment was never going to end, he was awoken.  
  
"Give me one good reason that I should not kill you right now," came the cold spoken words. Jack could feel a thin, cold metal blade against his throat. He realized the voice belonged to Kai. Was the wedding just a dream? He remembered, the wedding had not yet occurred, it was not to happen until morning. His pulse quickened, and muscles tensed. Jack could feel beads of sweat on his forehead.  
  
"Kai, give me two good reasons not to kill you," ordered Karen. She too had a knife, and it was a Kai's throat. He smiled sickly.  
  
Kai raised the knife slowly from Jacks throat. He knew Karen too well. She wouldn't kill him. "My first reason, is this." He plunged his knife into Karen's hip. She leaped backward instinctively, and hit the floor. Jack used this couple extra seconds to sack Kai with all his might. Kai tried his best to ignore the incredible pain. However, this time his will failed him as he sank to the floor.  
  
Jack jumped out of bed. "Not so strong now, are we Kai?" Jack tried his best to hide his fear, but in reality, he was terrified. Please God, protect both Karen and Me from this monster, he prayed in his mind. Jack ran over to where Karen was trying to pull the serrated knife.  
  
"You have made a grave mistake," Kai hissed. Before anybody could react, Kai slipped a knife from his pocket and whipped it at Karen, and rolled out the door. She closed her eyes, certain that it would hit her. Jack's prayers were answered, the knife barley missed her and sliced into the inflatable couch, depressurizing it.  
  
"We've got to stop him!" Karen whimpered.  
  
"It's too dark out." Jack replied. Karen knew it was true. There was no moon out tonight. For all they knew, Kai could be waiting to pounce, or something. Even then, it was a good mile or two by horse to the nearest farm.  
  
There was a dark pool of blood where Karen sat. He got out his first aid kit. There was only a couple of cotton swabs and q-tips. Then, Jack had an idea.  
  
"Jack, what are you doing?" Karen asked as Jack tore up his bed sheets.  
  
"Bandages," he replied, and walked towards her. Slowly, he bandaged up the gash. "When there is light, then we will get help." Karen looked into his eyes, and saw pure hatred, hatred towards Kai.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"I'm good," Kai told himself as he smiled evilly. He had been wandering this mine all night in the dark, hoping to find an old hiding spot. Many years ago, before Kai moved in with Karen's family, his parents would take him to visit his aunt and uncle Miller. Kai would sneak to the mines and go exploring. His parents forbade him to do so, and punished him when he disobeyed, but he endured it, and would continue to sneak off to the mines. It didn't matter how many times his mother would lecture him about the dangers of the mine, or how many times his father would whip him, he would come.  
  
Just up ahead was the ventilation shaft he was looking for. Kai began to climb up into it. This ventilation shaft was somewhat larger than the others, due to the fact that it was made of rock, soft enough for Kai to scrape away. All those years ago, he would hide here when his mom and dad would come looking for him. Kai closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.  
  
He was awoken abruptly by voices. Jacks and some other voice he couldn't identify. He tried to stay still, so as not to attract any attention.  
  
"The footprints stop here. Looks almost as if he were jumping." the strange female voice said. Kai was absolutely certain that he was going to be caught. He began to think frantically, as well as look around frantically. It was then that Kai noticed a huge spider had been crawling on him.  
  
"AHHHHHH!!!!!" Kai yelled as he began jerking around trying to get the spider off of him. In this process, he slipped and fell out of the shaft, right in-between Jack and the mystery person. He got up and began violently brushing himself off violently.  
  
If the conditions would have been different, Jack would have allowed himself to chuckle. But considering that Kai was a cold blooded murderer, Jack only smiled at the thought that the deadly Kai was terrified of spiders. Jack thought about how if Kai weren't his enemy, they would be able to all go to the bar and have a good laugh over it at the bar. Unfortunately, they were enemies.  
  
The police officer dove at Kai in an attempt to handcuff him. Kai was still squirming enough that she was unable to. Kai wiggled free, got back up to his feet, and dashed down the dark tunnels. Jack immediately began pursuit of the man, and the blond cop was not far behind. She grabbed the hand held radio from and pocket and began to signal for backup.  
  
As they went through the long tunnels, they reached a far more deteriorated section of the mine. The wooden supports were very rotten. Segments of the tunnels were even collapsed. The floor was covered in water. Jack remembered a trip to an old mine when he was young.  
  
The mine he visited had been restored, and was a tourist attraction. It had been used 50 years previously for mining coal. There was a section of mine they came up to that hadn't been restored. The floor was covered in water, and the tour guide had told him that this water actually provided stability for the mine.  
  
Kai came up to a fence, well, more like a wall. This wall separated this section of the mine from the oldest section of it. The oldest section was the most dangerous of them all. There have been reports from the citizens of the village of hearing large explosions in the middle of the night coming from here. The best explanation anyone has come up with is that some falling pebbles or something caused a spark, thus igniting the coal dust. That's what the explosions were. Jack had never heard such an explosion in the time he had been here. He had only heard talk from some of the men at the bar about one happening a couple of years ago.  
  
Jack grinned. "We've got you cornered Kai," he said as he and the officer approached Kai. Kai, the maniac, did not look too worried.  
  
"You underestimate me Jack," Kai replied. This worried Jack. Little did Jack know that Kai had very little idea how to escape this time. An idea began to formulate for Kai. He swiftly scanned the wall separating him from freedom, or temporary freedom, and found what he was looking for. As Jack and the police officer approached him, Kai rammed his foot into a rotted section of the wall. Kai had only expected a small chunk to tear off, but rather, a whole one square meter section came off. This was better then Kai could have planned. He dove into the hole, and ran off into the darkness of the oldest section.  
  
The wooden framework was extremely rotten in the oldest section. It's a wonder that the shaft lasted as long as it has. It also did not have any ventilation shafts, because back then it was ventilated by a huge fan at the entrance. And the entrances was in fact, at the opposite end of this old tunnel. It was dark, dreadfully horrifically dark. Kai coughed on the coal dust as he ran as far as he could into the tunnel. Kai slowly began to realise that this section was full of coal dust, and would be very easy to detonate. Jack, who was in hot pursuit, also knew this. Despite the risk, he had a score to settle with Kai. Nobody tries to kill him, or his friends, and gets away with it. He followed Kai in.  
  
"Jack!" officer Hanna called after him. "It's too dangerous in there."  
  
Jack turned around and looked back at her. "I am aware of the risks," he said calmly. Hanna looked into his eyes and saw the fury burning towards Kai. She knew there was no stopping him. "He attacked my fiancé, and I don't take well to people who do that."  
  
Hanna nodded. "Jack, I want to be clear on one thing. By no means attempt to kill Kai. Understand? If you do kill him, you will be just as guilty as him according to law."  
  
Jack nodded. "I know the laws," Jack stated. "Don't worry, I assure you that I will not kill him."  
  
Hanna nodded as Jack disappeared back into the tunnel.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
"Officer. Thank goodness I've found you. Have you seen Jack?" Karen asked.  
  
Hanna shook her head. "Not since he disappeared into there an hour ago."  
  
Karen groaned. "No."  
  
Since Jack had gone into the tunnel, the place had been bustling with police. Hanna had radioed the police station to send some men with fire retardant suits. They needed the suits to protect any men they would send in to pursue Kai. Kai was a dangerous man. Hanna knew Jack probably wouldn't be able to handle Kai if he caught him. But someone had to keep Kai occupied. She felt ashamed of herself for not have gone in herself. She was the one who had been trained in this kind of thing. But as much as she hated to admit it, she was a coward.  
  
All the time Hanna had been thinking to herself, she hadn't noticed Karen sneaking into the oldest shaft.  
  
"Don't worry Jack," Karen whispered to herself. "I'm on my way." 


	7. We All Go Kablewy

Chapter 07  
  
Jacks throat felt extremely dry from all of the coal dust that was in the air. He was terrified, knowing that at any time, Kai could blow this joint, killing both of them. After a moments pause, Jack dismissed this notion. From what he knew of Kai, he was sure he wouldn't kill himself Even then, Jack wasn't able to convince himself of Kai wouldn't kill him. He remembered back to the night Karen had stopped Kai from committing suicide. He almost wished Kai had succeeded in his attempt to take his own life. Then he wouldn't be in this dangerous position.  
  
It was so dark he could not see at all. He ran forward, and tripped, and landed on the rocky soil. Jack then realised he found Kai. "Kai," Jack stated.  
  
"You rang?" came the reply in the voice Jack found so infuriating. Jack stood up just in time to be hit with one of Kai's super charged fists right in the jaw. Jack staggered back. The rage inside of Jack burned. He hated Kai, and what he had done. In every muscle, tendon, and artery, he could feel the fury pulsating, literally. He hated Kai for killing Mrs. Miller, for trying to kill Mr. Miller, and most of all, for hurting Karen. Jack had almost never been the type to be prone to violence. But for Kai, he would make an exception. He would make Kai pay for all the misery he had cause  
  
Kai began to laugh as Jack swung the punch of his life, every fibre of his inmost being, every ounce of anger. He put all of his heart, soul and strength into this one. Time seemed to slow down as Jacks fist came towards the laughing Kai, until at last it came crashing down into Kai's nose.  
  
Kai stumbled backwards and fell to the floor. Jack smiled the laughter ceased. Ac Blood began to flow from Kai' s nose, Kai clenched his teeth denied his deep urge to scream. Jack wasn't done. He picked Kai up by the shoulder, and drove his knee up full thrust into Kai's groin. Kai screamed out in pain as he fell to the floor.  
  
"Jack!" Jack spun around. He squinted his eyes as a beam of light was shone towards them. It was Karen holding a flashlight as she limped towards them. Jack looked past her, hoping to see some police officers. There were none. Jack realised Karen had come alone.  
  
"What do you know, two birds with one stone," Kai panted. Jack turned around to see what Kai meant. To his horror, he saw Kai making sparks. Then there was a searing heat and a bright light. That was the last thing Jack remembered.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
There was a deafening explosion as some of the boards blocking the entrance into the oldest part of the mine flew off. The police knew that the worst had happened. Someone had detonated the coal dust. Without hesitation, a group of police officers rushed into the tunnel with their flashlights. Hanna cursed at herself. "What was that?" Chief Morris asked as he approached Hanna. "Huh? Oh, nothing," she said as she turned away from him. "Didn't sound like nothing to me," he replied. He sighed. "Hanna. I've never heard you use that kind of language except that time you lost several men under your command at that bank hold up three years ago. Would you mind telling me what all your cursing is all about?" "I'm sorry sir. It's just that I let Jack go in there, and I knew the dangers. 1 should have been the one to go." Hanna slammed her hands against the tunnel walls. "I'm sorry sir, I should never have let him go in there alone! I should have waited for backup..." Chief Morris put his hand on Hanna's shoulder. "We all make mistakes, and-" "No! There is no room for mistakes! I could have done better, I could have gone in myself, but I didn't! I was too afraid, I was too..." Hanna couldn't continue. She broke down sobbing, something she hadn't allowed herself to do in a very long time. Being a police officer was a hard job, a very demanding job, and as far as Hanna was concerned, only the strong ones survived, the ones who didn't cry. Yet here she was, crying her heart out. She felt ashamed of herself. "I shouldn't have let him go."  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
The world was like a spinning vortex, and Jack was in the middle of it, slowly being sucked into oblivion.  
  
"You rang?" Kai's voice echoed around him. Just as Jack was certain that he was going to die from misery, He fell, and landed on a beach. He recognized this beach, why, it is the very beach that Kai had nearly committed suicide on. And there were voices around him, whispering, and echoing. There was one voice that stood out among the rest, and that was the voice of Karen.  
  
"Jack." the voices didn't come from any direction in particular, but rather, the voices came from all around him. The sun slowly began to brighten. Jack tried to haul himself to his feet, but felt something restraining him. Another noise appeared in the distance, it was a beeping sort of noise. Slowly this world faded around him, and he found himself in another environment, a hospital. Slowly, the world became more coherent. Jack could see Karen looking down at him. There was something a wee bit different about her, but he just couldn't put a finger on it. There was a look of worry in Karen's face, and tears.  
  
Jack stretched his arms. "Good morning." he mumbled.  
  
Karen swiftly knelt down, and put her arm over Jack chest, and began to cry. "Thank God your all right," Karen managed between sobs. Jack clutched her hand, and held it firmly.  
  
Jack looked at Karen's face, and noticed one of the two main differences. "You hairs shorter," Jack commented.  
  
Karen smiled as she wiped the tears from her eyes. In fact, her hair used to go about half way down to her waist, but now, they only went down to her shoulders. The explosion had done quite a nice job of burning her hair shorter. The other thing which Jack immediately noticed was what he could not place a finger on earlier. Her face was somewhat scarred in a few places. These scars were due to small skin grafts put on some of her more serious burns.  
  
The doctor had explained to Karen a week or so previously that Jack had breathed in a whole lot more coal dust than she had, and it had damaged his lungs. The doctors had to put him on the life support system, until Jacks lungs healed enough for him to breath on his own. During this time, Karen worried about everything that could possibly go wrong with the system. Power outages, overloads, or just plane old getting worn out. Fortunately, Jack was recovering.  
  
While Jack was in the hospital, the police found Kai's body. The explosion he had created had caused tons of rock to come crashing down onto him. The reason the whole cave didn't cave in was that point where Kai ignited the coal dust, was extremely weak. Jack had just barely missed dying that way, unfortunately, his right leg was mangled beyond repair.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
7 months later  
  
"Jack, you may kiss the bride."  
  
Jack lifted up the veil that was covering Karen's face, and they kissed. Time seemed to stop for almost forever. After a seven month delay, they were finally married. Jack figured that some good had come from being forced into this delay. They had decided to go and seek counseling before getting married, and this would help them avoid a lot of future problems in their marriage.  
  
Together, Jack and Karen walked down the isle of the church. Karen looked over to where her proud father sat, and smiled at him. He returned the smile. The guests followed the new couple down the stairs, where they would all dine.  
  
As everyone was being seated, some people began to tap their wine glasses with their utensils. Karen's friend, Ann, stepped up to the microphone and addressed this. "A-hem. Could I have your attention please?" she waited for the guests to stop talking. "Thank you. Now, whenever we hear that tapping, we are going to draw the names of a couple out of this hat. See, when I draw YOUR name, you and your husband/wife/girlfriend/boyfriend have to kiss. But it's not quite that simple yet. You have to do it creatively. Then, Jack and Karen here, must try to imitate it." The guests began to laugh and applaud.  
  
Immediately someone began tapping on a glass, which was followed by more tapping. Ann drew a name out of the hat.  
  
"Could the Mayor and his wife come forward please?"  
  
The mayor and his wife came forward, and the mayor was holding a slice of cheese, which was only about 7cm long. The mayor bit into one end, and his wife bit down onto the other. They ate their way towards each other which ended with a kiss.  
  
"Oh boy." Jack mumbled as he grabbed a piece of cheese and limped towards the front of the room. Everyone had gotten used to Jacks limp. Seven months ago, he had his leg amputated because it just couldn't be fixed. Now instead, he word an artificial leg. Both Jack and Karen bit into the slice of cheese, and began to eat their way towards each other.  
  
  
  
  
  
THE END  
  
  
  
DISCLAIMER: Now for the disclaimers which seem kind of silly for anybody to need to put in. I don't own Jack, Harvest moon, or any of the characters (Like you didn't know that). I just own this story and my imagination. 


	8. Credits

Well, that brings my story to an end. YIKES! This is the first long story I have actually finished.   
  
I thank all of the people who reviewed my story and gave me pointers. I am going to also say,   
  
For those of you who are curious, I Am A Christian. If anything in this story feels a little bit unrealistic,  
  
Well, grin and bear it. Oh yeah, now that I'm done the story, I might finish my overhauling of my  
  
old chapters. So thank you for your reviews, and please continue to review. Untill my next story I guess. 


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